Sharmila Tagore

 ( 1944 Births ) 

Tagore was the eldest of three daughters and had two younger sisters, the late Oindrila Kunda Tinku and Romila Sen Chinky. Oindrila was the first in the family to act in a film, and the only role she ever played was that of Mini, the child character (but a central character) in Tapan Sinha's film Kabuliwala (1957). In adulthood, she became an international bridge player. Her other sister, Romila Sen, married to Nikhil Sen, a businessman who served as chief operating officer of Britannia Industries for several years, died as the founder and managing director of Unibic Foods in November 2019.

Tagore attended St. John's Diocesan Girls' Higher Secondary School and Loreto Convent, Asansol. She made her film debut when she was a 13-year-old schoolgirl, after which her studies lost priority. Within a short while, her attendance and performance at school suffered, she came to be regarded as a bad influence on her classmates, and was faced with a choice of either doing films or studying further. At that point, her father advised her to move ahead in life, commit herself to a film career and 'give it her all' in order to become successful.

Tagore made her Hindi film debut with Shakti Samanta's musical romance Kashmir Ki Kali (1964) alongside Shammi Kapoor. She and Samanta collaborated on several of his later films, including the romantic thriller An Evening in Paris (1967) again opposite Kapoor. With the film, she became the first Indian actress to appear in a swimsuit,Lalit Mohan Joshi & Gulzar, Derek Malcolm, Bollywood, page 20, Lucky Dissanayake, 2002, Various writers, Rashtriya Sahara, page 28, Sahara India Mass Communication, 2002Manjima Bhattacharjya, " Why the bikini is badnaam ", The Times of India, 25 November 2007Avijit Ghosh, " Bollywood's unfinished revolution", The Times of India, 2 July 2006 which established Tagore as a sex symbol in Hindi films.Subhash K Jha, " Bollywood's 10 hottest actresses of all time , The Times of India, 2003-01-19B. K. Karanjia, Blundering in Wonderland, page 18, Vikas Publishing House, 1990, While the scene in the film is often referred to as 'the bikini scene', Tagore's swimwear is actually a one piece. However, she did pose in a bikini for the cover of Filmfare magazine in 1966.B. K. Karanjia, Blundering in Wonderland, page 18, Vikas Publishing House, 1990, Sumita S. Chakravarty, National Identity in Indian Popular Cinema, 1947–1987, page 321, University of Texas Press, 1993, But, when she was the chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification 36 years later, she expressed concerns about the increased use of bikinis in Indian films.Preeti Mudliar, " Without Cuts ", Pune Newsline, 11 April 2005

Tagore went on to appear in films such as Waqt (1965) opposite Shashi Kapoor, Anupama (1966) opposite Dharmendra, Devar (1966) opposite Dharmendra, Sawan Ki Ghata (1966) opposite Manoj Kumar, Aamne Saamne (1967) opposite Shashi Kapoor, Mere Hamdam Mere Dost (1968) opposite Dharmendra and the Bengali film Nayak (1966) opposite Uttam Kumar. Her performance in Anupama proved to be her breakthrough in Hindi cinema. Classic Revisited: Anupama by Dinesh Raheja, Rediff.com.

Tagore teamed up again with her Waqt (1965) and Aamne Samne (1967) co-star Shashi Kapoor for Suhana Safar (1970), Aa Gale Lag Jaa (1973), and Paap Aur Punya (1974). She also worked with Amitabh Bachchan in Chupke Chupke (1975), Faraar (1975) and Besharam (1978).

In Gulzar's Mausam (1975), Tagore starred alongside Sanjeev Kumar, earning earned her first National Film Award for Best Actress, and her fifth nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Actress. During this time, she also worked with Uttam Kumar in Amanush (1975), Anand Ashram (1977) and Dooriyaan (1979).

Tagore's other films during this period included Ek Se Badhkar Ek (1976), Tyaag (1977), which she also co-produced, and the Malayalam film Chuvanna Chirakukal (1978) among others.

Tagore starred in the Bengali action film Protidan (1983) opposite Naseeruddin Shah, and Mira Nair's interracial romantic drama Mississippi Masala (1991). She also appeared in supporting roles in Ghar Bazar (1998) and Mann (1999). She also appeared in two television shows, Katha Sagar (1986) for DD National and Zindagi (1999) for Star Plus.Awaasthi, Kavita (16 May 2016) A touch of class: Shyam Benegal remembers the stories of Katha Sagar Hindustan Times. Retrieved 26 July 2020

Tagore was cast in her son Saif Ali Khan in his debut film Aashik Awara (1993) and the action drama (2007). She appeared in supporting roles in the musical romantic drama Dhadkan (2000) and Abar Aranye (2003), the latter of which earned her the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress. She also received critical acclaim for her performance in Shubho Mahurat (2003).

Tagore appeared in family drama Viruddh (2005) alongside Bachchan, earning her sixth nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Actress.

From 2007 to 2009, Tagore appeared in films such as Fool & Final (2007), Tasveer 8*10 (2009), Antaheen (2009) and the Marathi film Samaantar (2009). In 2009, she served on the jury at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival. She played a supporting role in the romantic comedy-drama Break Ke Baad (2010) before embarking on an acting hiatus.

In 2024, Tagore returned to Marathi films with Outhouse alongside Mohan Agashe, where she played a loving grandmother. Devesh Sharma of Filmfare noted, "Tagore brings warmth, wisdom, and a spark of curiosity to Aadima, portraying her as a nuanced blend of strength and vulnerability." Tagore made her comeback to Bengali films after 14 years with Suman Ghosh's Puratawn (2025).